Atlanta Hawks Ranked No. 9 in ESPN’s Pre-Season Power Rankings
The Atlanta Hawks’ offseason is almost over, as Training Camp begins on September 29th at the University of Georgia.
Throughout the offseason, the Atlanta Hawks have been subject to a myriad of different projections, previews and rankings. Most of them have been less than complementary of the Atlanta Hawks going into the 2015-2016 season, noting almost assured regression and the lost of DeMarre Carroll to be the primary reasons cited for a speculated decline.
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In late August and early September, ESPN ranked the Atlanta Hawks as the 5th most likely team in the Eastern Conference to win the ECF. The Hawks were behind the Washington Wizards, Miami Heat, Chicago Bulls and current Eastern Conference Champion Cleveland Cavaliers.
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Some fans, like myself, took issue with rankings such as this. I adamantly disagree with the assertion that the Atlanta Hawks will win 10 less games this season simply because of the loss of DeMarre Carroll in free agency. The Hawks ascended to the top of the Eastern Conference last year because of an excellent coach and impressive depth, not because of one player.
ESPN released their pre-season NBA Power Rankings on Friday, and writer Marc Stein ranks the Atlanta Hawks at No. 9, behind the New Orleans Pelicans and in front of the Miami Heat. Stein writes,
"“You heard it whispered often around the league: I don’t believe in the Hawks. And that was when they were assembling a 19-game winning streak en route to a 60-22 record. So there’s only louder doubt in store this season, even though they quietly answered DeMarre Carroll’s exit with Tiago Splitter and Tim Hardaway Jr.”"
Marc Stein deftly points out the additions of both Tiago Splitter and Tim Hardaway Jr. to the Atlanta Hawks this offseason in spite of DeMarre Carroll’s departure, as well as the litany of doubters across the country who question the Hawks ability to be a force in the East this season.
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Personally, I don’t disagree much with these rankings; but I do believe that ranking the New Orleans Pelicans in front of the Hawks is very presumptive considering that they were ousted in the first round of the Western Conference Playoffs last year (swept by the Golden State Warriors) and lack the depth of teams like the Atlanta Hawks coming off the bench.
At the very least, Stein ranked the Atlanta Hawks in front of other Eastern Conference rivals Heat, Bulls and Wizards. I still believe that in the end, the Hawks will return to the Eastern Conference finals this season against the Cleveland Cavaliers, but the journey there may be more difficult this season. The season is right around the corner fans. Go Hawks!